The Manning times. [volume] (Manning, Clarendon County, S.C.) 1884-current, 1887-12-14
Is llENORiAM.

Mr.. ". c. Benet read sc Interesting ne
moria; upon the life Of the late John b.
Jones. of Ncwbcrry Mr.. L. I. Young
read memorial of the late Henry BEiSt
Of Charleston. Mr.. P H. Nelson read a
memorial of the late Richard G. B0nham,
Of Abbeville
| The President announced the following
! gentleman as 9 Committee on Publication:
| ". F. Ansel. Simeon Hyde, George Z.
Prince, Ii. A. IL. Smith and the Secretary
e. 9fic.o.
| INTERESTING ESSAYS.
Dir. Edward 5icCrady, J7.. OF Charles
ton, real an essay on Professional Emol
uments
, He said that the profession in this State
| could not be indifferent to the increasing
complaints Of litigants upou the subject Of
| cos,s. lie thought that the whole subject
Of compensation should be REVISED. In
| some instances there had betn great abuse
| in the matter of costs between party and
party. He regarded taxed costs as iniu
ricus 10 the profession and We're relics of
| barbarism. Remuneration in the profcs
sion has become more and more precarious,
and it is to large extent on account Of
doing business on contingent fees. An
other difficulty was the want Of 4 definite
| fee bill to control charges against clients
aud 70 prevent the consequent undertaking
of some practitioner. He did not condemn
a.! contingent fees. He urged that they be
| less the rule and more the exception than
it is now.
President Parker being called away on
! business, Mr.. H. E Young presided dur
ing the reading Of Mr. McCrady's essay
On motion of Mr. Holmes, Mr.. Nc
Crady's essay was referred to the Commit
tee on Jurisprudence and Law Reform! to
frame and report some scheme embodying
| tie suggestions for action by the ASsocia-
ton.
Mr.. Charles L, Spencer, of lorkvillc.
read an essay upon Case Laws il al
Evil?" He maintained that il was III evil
an evil only so far SIS it tends to make case
lawyers, case-judges and case teXLwr;terS.
1t is not Of the ler $crtpta, tor Il comes TO
us in the form 0f reports Of judicial deci-
sions from every part OF the United States.
Nor Was il OF the lee AOR Scrtpta. Tie dan
ger of becoming dependent upon case ia;r
was greuter with lawyers lhan with judges.
It ought not TO be followed IN TIC sense Of
following precedent. The danger from
case. law to the lawyers is twofold-wiicn
it is relied on as enc of the regular sources
Of information: again it greatly diminishes
fondress and aptitude tor general study
There should be more OF an oral p">s"nta-
ton and argument. In conclusion, he said
that the fraternity should assume us It's
birthright the position which the fathers
and sages Of the profession in our State
have heQueathed, as equa! in ali things to
those of the first State bar II car great coni
inon country.
Tie essay Of Mr james AltIrich, Of
Aiken, was on Ethics OF ;hc Law lie
said that The Ethics cf the Law was too COM
plex and comprehensive 10 be re;;uce,; 10
an exact, unchangin@ scieave. L src,2
and expanded with society. Centuries ago
our forefathers laid the foundation Of that
noble system of legal ethics which We c.,i!
the Common Law. That law has ever be2n
the beacon light, guiding the Angln-SaXon
through periods OF peril and lighting his
path in tie pursuit Of knowledge and for
tune. The ethics OF Tie profession depend
upon the Bar The object Of this Associ2-
ton as defined il the Constitution is lauc;-
able Then let us enG@aver to realize in
our aspirations aud illustrate by our lives,
the letter and the spirit Of tIIa! article Of
our organic law, constituting, Us 1t does,